Feel of Fire
by Skylark Evanson
Summary: "Don't leave me alone." She had never before heard him so terrified. "Please," he begged, "please don't go."


**A/N: Came to me last night.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own.**

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><p><em><strong>Feel of Fire<strong>_

Flames. Everywhere. Eating everything in their path, devouring oxygen and wood and grass and earth until it was all just licking, lapping fire that sent snowflakes of ash into the sky and left black soot on the ground.

She had a hand on his arm, knowing how her touch was the key to everything. Her crimson locks were illuminated by the burning air, everything around them glowing orange and red. Her jade eyes glimmered with both fear and pain. A deep ache like a knife wound had settled in her heart. "It's okay," she whispered, afraid to move closer to him; even the slightest motion could tip him to murder given the incentive and moment. He was fragile as it was. She was always a savior to him, but that didn't mean she was immune to his vicious wrath. "It was an-"

"Accident," he spat, words like venom as they rolled off his tongue. His heart was thundering in his chest where an empty hole had been ripped with loss. The flames that destroyed his home reflected in the obsidian orbs. Flickering colors danced there alongside emotions, the two hand in hand. Black pain, red rage. His breath caught in his throat for a moment as his stomach clenched and the truth settled in. "It's always an accident." His face hardened to stone with a fierce scowl. Anger shone in his face.

She moved closer, fully understanding the risk. He needed human touch, love, attention. Especially now. Gwen said gently, "It wasn't supposed to happen, Kevin. You know that." She'd seen the whole place go up. Dark smoke, thicker than fog, rolled up into the night sky, billowing upwards with clouds of pure fire. Her green eyes had followed the explosion before finding the remains of the battered house with that one broken body inside.

"I should've been in there." A slight gasp hung in his voice, yet he tried to hide it. He'd been taught to be strong. Through everything. Younger years had brought hard, cold lessons. He was almost glad he'd learned them then rather than now. "I should've saved her. She can't take care of herself, I never should've left her alone, not even for a second." His eyes were cold and empty in a heartbeat at the realization of his suddenly being alone in the world, the last of his kind. His chest was heavy with pain like lead. Everything was crashing down. It only took one soul. Kevin's face was hard, lines creased in his forehead and his jaw set tight. Walls crumbling in, no way out, panic, fear, alone. It all felt far too familiar...

Giving in, she reached for him, held onto him, wrapped him in a tight hug and felt his arms reach for her just the same, desperate to know that there still might be someone there who cared just as much as she had before passing onto a better life. Gwen felt him shivering in he grasp, but from tears or shock she couldn't tell. Words still reached her ears over the crackling of the flames and the screaming of sirens around them. "Promise you'll never leave." His voice was hard, commanding. "Promise you won't die. Promise you'll be here." He was shaking even harder, and Gwen could feel tension building in his rock-solid muscles. "Don't leave me alone." She had never before heard him so terrified. "Please," he begged, "please don't go."

"I won't leave you." Her words were murmured into his broad chest as he tucked her in close. Her eyes were shielded from the blaze, and her cheek was pressed to his dark shirt. Her hands remained around his torso as she felt his lips press into her crimson crown. "I promise."

Another voice, weaker, came in. "Kevin..." It sounded almost relieved, and Gwen felt the Osmosian pulling away from her like the out-going tide. She looked to where he was moving and found her boyfriend clinging onto his stepfather as if he were the last living being on the planet. Harvey's arms folded around the burly teen, taking him in and treating him like he was only nine again.

He was shaking. Shivers ran down his spine; emptiness lingered in his limbs and mind. Everything felt so hollow, so pointless. Tears had pricked at the corners of his eyes before falling in sapphire droplets down his pale, smoke-stained cheeks. He never breathed another word, just held onto Harvey like it was all he lived for.

Gwen never thought she would see the day where Kevin would leave her side for his stepfather. She would've thought it to be beautiful had it not been coerced by a tragedy of fire.

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><p><strong>AN: Review?**

**~Sky**


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